LGBTQ Rights
Definition LGBT is an initialism that stands for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender . In use since the 1990s, the term is an adaptation of the initialism LGB, which itself started replacing the term gay when in reference to the LGBT community beginning in the mid-to-late 1980s, as many felt the term gay community did not accurately represent all those to whom it referred. The initialism has become mainstream as a self-designation and has been adopted by the majority of sexuality and gender identity-based community centers and media in the United States and some other English-speaking countries. It is also used in some other countries in whose languages the initialism is meaningful, such as France and Argentina. The initialism LGBT is intended to emphasize a diversity of sexuality and gender identity-based cultures and is sometimes used to refer to anyone who is non-heterosexual or non-cisgender instead of exclusively to people who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender. To recognize this inclusion, a popular variant adds the letter Q for those who identify as queer and/or are questioning their sexual identity as LGBTQ, recorded since 1996. On the one hand, some intersex people who want to be included in LGBT groups suggest an extended initialism LGBTI (recorded since 1999). This initialism "LGBTI" is used in all parts of "The Activist's Guide" of the Yogyakarta Principles in Action. Furthermore, the initialism LGBTIH has seen use in India to encompass the hijra third gender identity and the related subculture. More recently, the catch-all term gender and sexual diversity (GSD) has been proposed. Whether or not LGBT people openly identify themselves may depend on whether they live in a discriminatory environment, as well as on the status of LGBT rights where they live. History Before the sexual revolution of the 1960s, there was no common non-derogatory vocabulary for non-heterosexuality; the closest such term, third gender, traces back to the 1860s but never gained wide acceptance in the United States. The first widely used term, homosexual, originally carried negative connotations and tended to be replaced by homophile in the 1950s and 1960s, and subsequently gay in the 1970s. As lesbians forged more public identities, the phrase "gay and lesbian" became more common. The Daughters of Bilitis folded in 1970 over which direction to focus on: feminism or gay rights issues. As equality was a priority for lesbian feminists, disparity of roles between men and women or butch and femme were viewed as patriarchal. Lesbian feminists eschewed gender role play that had been pervasive in bars, as well as the perceived chauvinism of gay men; many lesbian feminists refused to work with gay men, or take up their causes. Lesbians who held a more essentialist view that they had been born homosexual and used the descriptor "lesbian" to define sexual attraction, often considered the separatist, angry opinions of lesbian-feminists to be detrimental to the cause of gay rights. This was soon followed by bisexual and transgender people also seeking recognition as legitimate categories within the larger community. After the initial euphoria of the Stonewall riots wore off, starting in the late 1970s and the early 1980s, there was a change in perception; some gays and lesbians became less accepting of bisexual or transgender people. It was thought that transgender people were acting out stereotypes and bisexuals were simply gay men or lesbian women who were afraid to come out and be honest about their identity. Each community that is collectively included has struggled to develop its own identity including whether, and how, to align with other gender and sexuality-based communities at times excluding other subgroups; these conflicts continue to this day. The initialism LGBT saw occasional use in the United States from about 1988. Not until the 1990s did it become common to speak of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people with equal respect within the movement. Although the LGBT community has seen much controversy regarding universal acceptance of different member groups (bisexual and transgender individuals, in particular, have sometimes been marginalized by the larger LGBT community), the term LGBT has been a positive symbol of inclusion. Despite the fact that LGBT does not nominally encompass all individuals in smaller communities (see Variants below), the term is generally accepted to include those not identified in the four-letter acronym. Overall, the use of the term LGBT has, over time, largely aided in bringing otherwise marginalized individuals into the general community. Transgender actress Candis Cayne in 2009 called the LGBT community "the last great minority", noting that "We can still be harassed openly" and be "called out on television." Variants of LGBT Many variants exist including variations that merely change the order of the letters; LGBT or GLBT are the most common terms and the ones most frequently seen in current usage. Although identical in meaning, LGBT may have a more feminist connotation than GLBT as it places the "L" (for "lesbian") first. When not inclusive of transgender people it is sometimes shortened to LGB. LGBT may also include additional "Q"s for "queer" or "questioning" (sometimes abbreviated with a question mark and sometimes used to mean anybody not literally L, G, B or T) which can then look like e.g., "LGBTQ" or "LGBTQQ"". Other variants may add a "U" for "unsure"; a "C" for "curious"; an "I" for "intersex"; another "T" for "transsexual" or "transvestite"; another "T", "TS", or "2" for "Two-Spirit" persons; an "A" or "SA" for "straight allies"; or an "A" for "asexual". Some may also add a "P" for "pansexual" or "polyamorous", an "H" for "HIV-affected", and/or an "O" for "other". The order of the letters has not been standardized; in addition to the variations between the positions of the initial "L" or "G", the mentioned, less common letters, if used, may appear in almost any order. Variant terms do not typically represent political differences within the community, but arise simply from the preferences of individuals and groups. The terms pansexual, omnisexual, fluid and queer-identified are regarded as falling under the umbrella term bisexual and therefore the bisexual community. Likewise, the terms transsexual and intersex are regarded by some people as falling under the umbrella term transgender, though many transsexual and intersex people object to this (both for different reasons). "SGL" ("same gender loving") is sometimes favored among black Americans as a way of distinguishing themselves from what they regard as white-dominated LGBT communities. "MSM" ("men who have sex with men") is clinically used to describe men who have sex with other men without referring to their sexual orientation. A phrase introduced in the 2000s, "minority sexual and gender identities" ("MSGI"), and the similar "gender and sexual minorities" ("GSM"), are intended as more inclusive identifiers, but have yet to find their way into common usage. The magazine Anything That Moves coined the acronym "FABGLITTER" from Fetish (such as the BDSM lifestyle community), Allies or poly-Amorous (as in Polyamorous couples), Bisexual, Gay, Lesbian, Intersexed, Transgender, Transsexual Engendering Revolution or inter-Racial attraction; however, this term has not made its way into common usage. Another acronym that has begun to spread is "QUILTBAG" from Queer or Questioning, Undecided, Intersex, Lesbian, Trans, Bisexual, Asexual, Gay; again, this is not a common term. Similarly, in some areas people are starting to simply use "LGBTQetc" or "LGBTQ+" to be more inclusive. The initial A for Allies comes from straight (heterosexual) allies who are in support of the GLBT community, and sometimes they form an alliance in sociopolitical affairs to further represent the umbrella initialism "GLBTA" (Gay Lesbian Bi Trans Alternative or Allies). The A may also be used to represent asexual people. "LGBTQIA" has some use among transgender American college students and their contemporaries. The gender identity "transgender" has been recategorized to trans* by some groups, where trans (without the asterisk) has been used to describe trans men and trans women, while trans* covers all non-cisgender (genderqueer) identities, including transgender, transsexual, transvestite, genderqueer, genderfluid, non-binary, genderfuck, genderless, agender, non-gendered, third gender, two-spirit, bigender, and trans man and trans woman. In response to years of lobbying from users and LGBT groups to eliminate discrimination, the online social networking service Facebook, in February 2014, widened its gender variants to 50. However, this initiative has its critics. Pictures of Pride Symbols and Pride Pictures Marriage Equality.jpg Pride Day.jpg being visible.jpg dads.jpg Pansexual2.jpg|Pansexual Flag Transgender flag.png|Transgender Flag Bisexual Triangles.png|Bisexual Triangle Bisexual pride flag.png|Bisexual Flag Category:Gay Category:Lesbian